Mystery Paradise: Wishing Power Demon

Chapter 78 - 78 77 Joint Sweep

?Chapter 78: Chapter 77: Joint Sweep Chapter 78: Chapter 77: Joint Sweep However, these arguments were just rumors among the populace.

To this day, no church priest had believed that the followers of the Hidden Mist Sect possessed such capabilities.

The reason was simple: such authority was too powerful, and if the New Continent were indeed occupied by such people, they could just as easily engulf the Old Continent in the same blanket of mist.

After all, there was no known method in the world that could permanently eliminate the mist.

“They dare to brazenly attack Gaotian Mining now, and you say there’s no evidence?” the lord retorted. “Must we wait for them to join the rebels and appear on Central Street before we can react?”

“What did you say?” Shandela was taken aback. “Hidden Mist Sect attacked Gaotian Company?”

“What, you haven’t received the news yet?” Li Qiang picked up a letter from the desk and tossed it to her. “It’s not just the cultists, but also the fleeing miners, and the thieves that sprouted from who knows where! The timing of their ambush coincided perfectly with the tide of the mist!”

Shandela quickly scanned the briefing, feeling a surge of anger rising within her.

They were ambushed in the early hours of the morning, yet the company had not informed the city guard until now; it was an outright act of retaliation!

They were clearly opposed to her attempts to reclaim the city’s security rights.

However, the laws of Magnificent Castle stipulated that any incidents involving heretical cultists must be reported to the city guard at the first opportunity. Their actions amounted to a violation of the law!

But she knew that now was not the time for confrontations. Calming the lord’s fury was of utmost importance.

According to the briefing, Gaotian Mining Company had lost two transportation trains in the attack, as well as nearly one hundred and fifty casualties. The losses included but were not limited to a large number of miners, payroll that was to be distributed, and several high-value steam engines. The estimated number of enemies ranged from fifty to sixty, armed with unknown firearms, and they retreated from the battlefield using the rising mist as cover.

In other words, the company didn’t capture even a single live captive.

As for the unknown firearms… Shandela couldn’t help but recall the previous incident at Wangshui Manor, where survivors had also reported that the enemy wielded extremely powerful guns with high fire rates and precision, almost like fantastic weapons.

After finishing reading the briefing, she set it down, “Sir, if the mining company didn’t capture any prisoners, how did they determine that cultists were involved?”

“In this world, where do such coincidences arise! They haven’t appeared for ten or dozens of years, and when they do, it just happens to coincide with the rebels’ attack?” Li Qiang asserted with conviction. “The fact has proven that among the hundreds of miners on the hijacked trains, only a very few have been recovered by the company; the rest have vanished in the Misty Zone. Adding that Gaotian Mining had previously detected tendencies of fleeing miners forming organizations, isn’t it clear where these people have gone to?”

“So, you mean to say… the Hidden Mist Sect was coordinating with them?”

“What else could it be? If there were no mist tide, the city guard and the mine security forces could have flanked the attackers from east and west. But as soon as the mist rose, everyone had to huddle under the spirit lanterns, and they naturally had free reign!”

The lord took a breath and continued. “I used to think that those runaway miners were just hiding somewhere, or simply fled back to the Old Continent, but I never imagined they would band together, join forces with the heretical cult, and openly confront me! This is my city; they won’t lay a finger on it!”

Shandela was seeing Li Qiang Ola’s indignant appearance for the first time. “Please calm yourself, sir. I will dispatch a team to investigate this immediately—”
“No need for investigations. I want their heads!” the Earl interrupted her, “Gaotian Mining, Schneck Shipping, Black Steel Security, and Fafu Construction have already gathered a joint force to thoroughly sweep the smelting district and Huiqiu Mine. But they are just mercenaries after all, and I will not permit mercenaries to lead the city’s defense. The reason I called you here is straightforward. I want you to lead this massive cleanup operation, take all the city guards, and thoroughly comb through the surrounding mist areas of the city! If you can’t handle this, I’ll find someone who can!”

“Your subordinate obeys!” She knew she could only accept the order at this moment.

“Remember, although your primary task is to root out the followers of the Hidden Mist Sect, those fleeing miners must not be overlooked! Gaotian Mining believes that one of their main purposes in attacking the train was to recruit new miners to strengthen their own forces, in order to plot a greater conspiracy. These people must be eradicated as well!”

“Understood.”

“Additionally, let the case at the North City Police Station be concluded,” Li Qiang’s fury seemed to have subsided somewhat, but his tone grew increasingly icy, “Blame it on the members of the Hidden Mist Sect, then carry out a public execution. Let every resident of Magnificent Castle see that heretics are the true masterminds corrupting the police.”

Shandela couldn’t help frowning, “You gave me two weeks, and the deadline has not yet arrived—”
“This is an order!” Li Qiang said without room for discussion, “Listen well, I want you to focus all your efforts on striking down this rebellion. Make every citizen believe there is such an enemy, then watch as it is swiftly and decisively crushed, showing Magnificent Castle has the capability and confidence to protect local merchants. Did you understand?”

Shandela suddenly realized that these companies must have lobbied the lord.

In this way, the background of the North City Police Station being funded by Gaotian Mining would be downplayed, to be replaced with another vicious attack by “heretics.” And the Earl’s high-profile response would also stabilize the confidence of other investors, showing them their wealth was still under powerful protection.

Compared to the truth, the lord preferred the interests of his own city.

“What’s your answer?” Li Qiang looked at her.

“Yes!” Shandela put aside that slight regret, “Your subordinate will get it done.”

“Good,” the Earl nodded slightly, settling back into his armchair, “Take the priests of the Mechanical Sect and sharpen the swords a bit more, let those wretched commoners taste blood!”

…

The next morning, Chu City.

Zhang Zhiyuan had just finished exchanging information with his colleagues at the police station when he stepped outside and saw his support person.

“Comrade Zhang, hello. My name is Lu Ming.” A man dressed in special police attire approached him for a handshake, “My brothers are all waiting outside. Rest assured, we guarantee to assist you in completing this mission.”

“You… hello.” Zhang Zhiyuan was somewhat stunned. He looked outside the police station’s courtyard and saw two vans, surrounded by a dozen fully armed special police officers.

Was this Gao Wei’s so-called “sending a few people for face”?

He couldn’t help but see his boss in a new light.

“Wow, they all have guns,” Cui Zhen’en whispered, “That’s so unfair, I mean, compared to us in Interpol.”

“Shall we get in the van?”

“Ah… okay.” Zhang Zhiyuan snapped back to reality and boarded the lead van with Cui Zhen’en.

“Sorry, this van is a bit cramped, please bear with us,” Lu Ming said as he sat down close to Zhang Zhiyuan, “Normally, we use special service vehicles for missions, but this time the boss asked us to be as unexpected as possible, so we switched to regular civilian cars.”

“No problem… a civilian car is fine.” Zhang Zhiyuan opened up his mobile navigation, “We’re headed to this location. I asked the local police to keep watch last night, and so far, there have been no signs of the suspect leaving.”

“Don’t worry, we’re aware of everything you told the Chu City Police, including the target’s location,” Lu Ming waved his hand, indicating the navigation wasn’t necessary, “We’ve also been informed that this is a highly sensitive matter, so I will not ask what should not be asked. However, there’s one thing I’d like to confirm in advance: how dangerous is this individual? Could he be carrying weapons or explosives? If it’s the latter, we’ll have to evacuate before making the arrest, at least getting the residents from his unit out.”